Songea is the capital of
Ruvuma Region in southwestern
Tanzania
Tanzania (; ), officially the United Republic of Tanzania ( sw, Jamhuri ya Muungano wa Tanzania), is a country in East Africa within the African Great Lakes region. It borders Uganda to the north; Kenya to the northeast; Comoro Islands and ...
.
It is located along the
A19 road. The city has a population of approximately 203,309,
and it is the seat of the
Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Songea. Between 1905 and 1907, the city was a centre of African resistance during the
Maji Maji Rebellion in
German East Africa
German East Africa (GEA; german: Deutsch-Ostafrika) was a German colony in the African Great Lakes region, which included present-day Burundi, Rwanda, the Tanzania mainland, and the Kionga Triangle, a small region later incorporated into Mozam ...
. The city is poised to experience significant economic growth in the near future as the Mtwara Corridor opens up in a few years. Projected to be the sixth fastest growing city on the African continent between 2020 and 2025, with a 5.74% growth.
History
Songea was a great
Ngoni warrior, hanged in 1906 during the time of German repression of the Maji Maji rebellion. Songea had been spared the death sentence because he had surrendered. However he demanded to be hanged along with the other Ngoni leaders. The Germans complied.
After the Second World War, the area was marked for rapid agricultural development linked to the ultimately disastrous
groundnut scheme. A railway had been planned from the coast to Songea and actually appeared in 1950s high school geography text books. During the liberation war with Mozambique the Songea area was a restricted zone and occasionally suffered aerial attacks by Portuguese forces. Its remoteness made it vulnerable to ivory poaching, and communications remained unreliable until 1985 when a new British funded road was opened linking it northwards to the road and rail hub of
Makambako
Makambako is a medium-sized town and district in the Njombe Region of the Tanzanian Southern Highlands, located roughly 40 miles north of Njombe city by road. It is located at junction of the A104 and B4 roads between Njombe, Iringa, and Mbeya. I ...
.
Songea became a municipality in 2006.
Education
Songea is the home to many educational institutions including;
# Matogoro Teachers Colleges
# Peramiho School of Nursing
# Kigonsera High School
# Songea Boys Secondary School
# Songea Girls Secondary School
# Peramiho Girls School
# The St. Augustine University
Administration
Songea is coextensive with
Songea Urban District
Songea Urban District is one of the five districts in the Ruvuma Region of Tanzania. It is bordered to the north by the Songea Rural District, to the east by the Namtumbo District, to the south by Mozambique and to the west by the Mbinga Distric ...
and is divided into
wards
Ward may refer to:
Division or unit
* Hospital ward, a hospital division, floor, or room set aside for a particular class or group of patients, for example the psychiatric ward
* Prison ward, a division of a penal institution such as a priso ...
. It is managed by the Songea Municipal Council.
References
Populated places in Ruvuma Region
Regional capitals in Tanzania
{{Ruvuma-geo-stub